


Call An Amnesty On All Our Pride

by Snow



Category: Swordspoint Series - Ellen Kushner
Genre: Alec is so brittle, Alternate Universe - High School, I Don't Even Know, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-12-24
Updated: 2010-12-24
Packaged: 2017-10-14 02:16:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/144247
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Snow/pseuds/Snow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's a high school AU and Alec is <em>supposed</em> to be Richard's math tutor.  They might get a little distracted.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Call An Amnesty On All Our Pride

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Brigdh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brigdh/gifts).



> I'm so sorry. Actually, not really, not at all.
> 
> This is a treat.
> 
> Betaed by the lovely ambyr.

Richard isn't very good in math. He knows that, his teachers know that, and they've long since given up on having him learn anything, but particularly not math. Everyone knows that Richard isn't destined for college, indeed, for anything that would require him to know trigonometry.

His teacher this year is new and bright-eyed, and she asks Richard if he can stop by after school. "I have football practice," he tells her.

"And we both know that you need to at least make a pretense of keeping your grades up if you want to stay on the team," she replies. "And that practice doesn't start until an hour after classes get out, precisely so that you could meet with teachers if you wanted."

Richard sighs. "I'll be here. All the effort in the world won't make me any smarter, though."

She smiles back. "I have confidence in you."

* * *

It turns out that her confidence is actually a tutor, who will be here, she promises, in just a moment. "He might have gotten lost," she admits, when it's been an awkward seven minutes of both of them waiting. "He is new to the school."

When he does show up Ms. Mason greets the skinny brown-haired boy with a bright smile. Richard just blinks disbelievingly at him.

"So nice of you to join us, Alec," she says when he's in. "This is Richard. He'll be taking instruction from you."

"No I won't," Richard says bluntly.

Alec smiles back, his smile less bright and much more mad than Ms. Mason's was. "I'll see you after football practice, then?"

* * *

It's like Alec is _trying_ to get Richard to hit him. He's waiting outside the locker room when Richard comes in to change, and is still there when they finish, waiting patiently. He walks over as soon as Richard exits, ignoring the two boys Richard is in a conversation with. "Ready to go?" he asks.

Richard is trying to figure out the best way to respond to that when Mitch snorts. "Got a date, Richard?" he asks.

"I think Jessamyn was prettier," Carl adds.

"Oh, that's just because you haven't seen me when I bother to dress up nicely," Alec says. "I know I don't need to do that for Richard, do I?"

Richard clenches a fist, but Alec is trying too hard, and Richard is wary of the fact that there might be teachers around. Alec doesn't look like the sort who understands the importance of keeping disagreements between students. To be fair, he also looks like he'd crumple at the first blow. "By all means," Richard says. "Let's go somewhere private and out of screaming range of the principal's office." Richard doesn't think he could _give_ a clearer warning, but Alec doesn't even pause to consider heeding it.

"That sound _lovely_ ," Alec murmurs, and Richard very nearly does hit him then and there after all. He manages to restrain himself.

* * *

For reasons Richard doesn't remotely understand, after they round the final corner and achieve the quiet, private place, he just pauses, considering Alec in silence.

"Are you going to punch me or not?" Alec asks when the silence has grown uncomfortable.

"Why do you want me to beat you up?" Richard responds.

Alec shrugs. "It's you or someone else. Might as well get it over with."

Richard sighs. "I'm not going to punch you."

Alec looks genuinely surprised at that. "Why not?"

"Because I don't want to."

"What? You'd rather make out with me?" Alec suggests.

Richard quells the first instinct to lash out in a rage and pretends to actually think over the proposal. To his surprise the pretending quickly falls away, and before Richard can tell himself what a terrible idea this is he's pushing Alec into the wall, with a hand cradled around Alec's head to protect it. Then Richard's moving in, pressing his lips against Alec's. Alec relaxes completely, until Richard has to hold him up, but that's not really an issue, not when Alec is probing his tongue into Richard's mouth, and Richard was so very careful to choose a spot where no one would see them.

He does lean back eventually, breaking the kiss, when it's a choice between either his brain kicking in or entirely abandoning him.

"Don't stop," Alec pleads, and that's almost enough to undermine Richard's careful self control.

Alec starts to sulk when Richard puts a couple of feet between them. "Is it because 'Jessamyn' is prettier than I am?"

"She's _not_ ," Richard replies with a venom that surprises himself.

Alec nods, apparently just accepting that. "I wouldn't think you'd be overly concerned about the schoolwork you should be doing instead."

Richard resists the urge to crack a smile then, because this is serious. "You're male," he tells Alec.

"I had noticed," Alec remarks dryly. "So are you."

"Exactly."

Alec shrugs. "I'm not asking for any kind of commitment from you, for you to bring me flowers and wait outside my locker. You can fuck me against this wall, and that can be it. If you're not comfortable with the fact that you're closeted, I'm hardly going to be the one to force you to be. You can even beat me up in front of your friends to prove that you're not gay, if you want."

Alec sounds _far_ too comfortable with that proposition for Richard to even consider it. He doesn't see much point to beating on someone who already has such an attitude of defeat as Alec. "I'm not going to do that," Richard says.

"Why not?" Alec asks. "Look, I'm - "

"Because I _want_ to bring you flowers and wait outside your locker and make you smile," Richard snaps. "And maybe I also want to fuck you against a wall, but I rather doubt you want it to be this one, and I'd rather fuck you in a bed first."

Alec stares at Richard, deep green eyes blinking rapidly. "Ms. Mason said that you have a very low estimation of your own intelligence."

"Yeah?"

"You're right," Alec says, moving closer to Richard as he does it. "You _are_ an idiot."

Richard smiles, and brings up his hands to catch Alec in a hug.

**Author's Note:**

> I welcome and appreciate comments, including constructive criticism.


End file.
